Christmas2004

Hello,

Our favorite time of the year once again! We love reflecting on the many joyous times of Christmases past and enjoying the blessings of the present. We hope that your blessings approach or exceed ours.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Here's what we've been up to in 2004:

Employment: Eric continues to operate his company, Altruist Financial Advisors LLC. It has been doing well and continues to grow exponentially. As of the end of 2004, he has about $15 million in assets under management. A professional highlight was that Eric had an academic paper published in The Journal of Financial Planning. The paper also won an award ($1,000 plus a trophy) from that journal for the best academic paper in their "Call for Papers" competition. The paper is titled, "Mutual Fund Expense Ratios: How High is Too High?"

Melissa continues as a part-time nurse at Spectrum Hospital in Grand Rapids, MI.
Computer: We got DSL this year! No more slow dial-up internet connections! We set up a wireless network in our home and our two PCs share the DSL connection.
Renovations: We rebuilt our pole barn this fall.
Vacations: The highlight was Eric going Polar Bear watching with his father and his son in Churchill, Manitoba. We saw about two dozen Polar Bears! We also spent one week at our family's cottage in NW Michigan on beautiful Crystal Lake and a week at our favorite summer camp, Camp Michigania.
Boy Scouts: Our son Morgan achieved Tenderfoot rank in Boy Scouts. Eric continues as an enthusiastic Assistant Scoutmaster. Highlights of the scouting year included mountain biking, rock climbing, canoeing, skiing, winter camping (including building and sleeping in a snow shelter), summer camp, and Wood Badge training for Eric.
Athletics: Our son, Morgan(12), participated in baseball, soccer, swimming, tennis, and wrestling. Our daughter, Lisette(8), played soccer and "tee-ball", swam, wrestled, and participated in ballet. Eric was an assistant baseball coach for the second year, for two teams.
Navy: Eric's still a Commander in the Navy Reserve. He is still in a non-pay position, and that seems unlikely to change before he finishes his twenty years in 2005.
Good recent movies seen: The Incredibles, Fifty First Dates, The Family Man, Something's Gotta Give, Finding Nemo.
Other: Eric reached the 21 gallon level of lifetime blood donations this year.
On the critter front, a Peacock has been hanging out with some of the local wild turkeys.

Smile & Be Happy!

Eric & Melissa Haas

Eric's personal Home Page
Eric's Christmas Card Page

To send Eric an E-Mail, click here.

This page last updated 10/14/05